Textile stretching and drying device



Nov. 11; 1969 N. A. FELD ET AL 3,477,155

TEXTILE STRETCHING AND DRYING DEVICE Filed June 24, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTORS NELLlE ANCONA FELD GEORGE J. FELD ATTORNEY Nov. 11, 1969 F D ET AL 3,477,155

'IEXTILE- STRETCHING AND DRYING DEVICE Filed June 24', 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTORS ANCONA FELD J. FELD 1.. ATTORNEY United States Patent M 3,477,155 TEXTILE STRETCHING AND DRYING DEVICE Nellie Ancona Feld and George J. Feld, both of 100 Ave. P, Brooklyn, N.Y. 11204 Filed June 24, 1968, Ser. No. 739,378 Int. Cl. D06c 3/08; A41h /00 US. Cl. 38-1023 15 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This device comprises a pair of similar panels of water non-absorbable closed cell expanded foam, held in coplanar coextensive positions by top andbottom channel members slidable thereon. Means is provided to keep the panels from moving out of a common plane at their meeting edges. The device is of knockdown construction for easier shipping, packaging and to reduce bulk. The front and rear surfaces of the panels are grooved for air circulation and serrated to roughen the surfaces so that a sweater will cling better to said surfaces. The grooves are in equally spaced apart vertical and horizontal rows to permit measurement. The front and rear surfaces and outer side edges and end edges of the panels are pressed to harden said surfaces and edges. A hook is mounted on one channel for hanging the device.

This application discloses an improvement in our copending applications Ser. No. 637,824 filed May 11, 1967. now Patent No. 3,425,143 and Ser. No. 696,539 filed Jan. 9, 1968.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Field of the invention This invention relates to household devices for stretch ing and drying sweaters and other textile articles.

Description of the prior art Sweater dryers made of screen material or of plates with spaced holes to receive pegs for holding down the sweater have been known. Foldable hinged panels for this purpose have also been known.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of this invention is to provide a device of the character described comprising a knockdown construction in which the parts may be disassembled for ease in shipment, packaging and reducing of bulk.

Another object of this invention is to provide, in a device of the character described, a panel of water nonabsorbable material provided with crossing vertical and horizontal, equally spaced grooves to allow for air circulation between the panel and overlying sweater, and to facilitate measurement for accurate layout and stretch. For this purpose the grooves are preferably spaced apart one inch.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a device of the character described comprising a pair of panels of polystyrene foam held in coplanar positions by channel members slidably engaging upper and lower edges of said panels, with said panels having edge to edge contact, and means at the meeting edges of said panels to prevent said panels from moving out of a common plane.

A further object of this invention is to provide a strong, compact and durable device of the character described which shall be relatively inexpensive to manufacture, easy to set up and disassemble, and which shall yet be practical and efficient to a high degree in use.

Other objects of this invention will in part be obvious and in part hereinafter pointed out.

3,477,155 Patented Nov. 11, 1969 The invention accordingly consists in the features of construction, combinations of elements, and arrangement of parts which will be exemplified in the construction hereinafter described, and of which the scope of invention will be indicated in the following claims.

' BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING In the accompanying drawing, in which are shown various illustrative embodiments of this invention,

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a device embodying the invention with a sweater thereon in position for stretching and drying;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of said device with one panel moved out of position of use;

FIG. 3 is a partial, enlarged front view of one portion of said device;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 44 of FIG. 2, but with the panels in edge to edge contact;

FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 55 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken in lone 6-6 of FIG 3;

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring now in detail to the drawing, 10 designates a device for drying and stretching a sweater 11 or other textile articles. Said device 10 comprises a pair of coextensive panels 12, 13 of similar thickness and made of water non-absorbable material such as polystyrene foam or other closed cell expanded foam. The panels are each preferably about to 1 /2 in thickness and 12 wide and 26" in length.

Means is provided to releasably hold said panels in side by side coplanar positions with inner edges in edge to edge contact. To this end, each panel is formed adjacent the upper and lower edges thereof, and on opposite sides thereof, with longitudinal grooves 15. Slidably mounted on the upper and lower edges of said panels are channel members 16, 17, respectively having inturned v longitudinal edges 16a, 17a projecting into said grooves 15. Channel members 16, 17 may be made of styrene or other plastic or metal.

The top edges of said panels have central aligned grooves 18 for the purpose hereinafter appearing. The channel members 16, 17 frictionally hold the panels together.

Said panels are formed, at their front and rear surfaces, with parallel crossing horizontal and vertical equally spaced grooves 20, 21, respectively, about 4; in depth, to allow for circulation of air between the panels 12, 13 and the sweater 11. The parallel grooves 20 as well as the parallel grooves 21 are preferably spaced apart 1 to facilitate placement of the sweater on the panels and also to measure desired degree of stretch.

The square portions between the grooves 20, 21 are serrated in narrowly spaced horizontal and vertical shallow grooves 23, 24. These grooves 23, 24 are only about deep and roughen the outer surfaces of the panels to enhance the grip on the sweater or other textile article applied.

The grooves 20, 21, 23, 24 are preferably made with rollers which are pressed against the opposite surfaces of the panels to harden the panels near their outer surfaces. The side edges and the upper and lower edges are also hardened by means of pressing rollers thereagainst. The grooves 15 and 18 may be made by rollers or in any other suitable manner.

It will be noted that the sweater may be folded about the outer side edges 27, 28 of the panels 12, 13, respectively, so as to accommodate larger garments. The hardening of the edges of the panels toughens and compresses the cellular material for strength against accidental breakage.

The top or upper channel member may have a central opening 30. A connector 31 has a stem 32 passing through said opening. At the lower end of the stem is a head 33 disposed in groove 18. At the upper end of stem 32 is a loop 34. A link 35 connects loop 34 to a hanger hook 36 for hanging the device from any support or rod, such as a shower curtain rod of a bathroom.

Means is provided to hold the meeting or inner edges 27a, 28a of the panels 12, 13 respectively, against offset or moving out of a common fiat plane. T this end panel 12 is formed with a plurality of similar, spaced horizontal sockets 40 extending to edge 27a, in which sockets are received half portions of pegs 41 which may be glued in place if desired. Pegs 41 may be made of plastic, wood, metal or any suitable material. The panel 13 is formed at edge 28a thereof with sockets 42 to releasably receive the projecting ends of said pegs 41. The pegs prevent movement of one panel normal to its outer surface relative to the other panel.

In FIGS. 7 and 8 there is shown a modified construction a similar to device 10 except that for the sockets 40, 42 and pegs 41 there is substituted, longitudinal registering vertical grooves 50, 51 in the meeting edges of the panels. In one groove is a spline 52 fixed therein in any suitable manner (as by glueing) and projecting therefrom for reception in the other groove. The grooves 50, 51 as well as spline 52 are equally spaced from opposite surfaces of the panels.

The sweater may be held on the panels by thin, headed pins 60. The pins pierce the sweater and the panels and remain embedded in the panels by reason of the character of the foam material.

It will thus be seen that there is provided an article in which the several objects of this invention are achieved, and which is well adapted to meet the conditions of practical use.

As possible embodiments might be made of the above invention, and as various changes might be made in the embodiments above set forth, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings, is to be interpreted as illustrative only.

We claim:

1. A device for stretching and drying a textile article, comprising a pair of coextensive panels, upper and lower channels members slidably engaging upper and lower edges of said panels, respectively, to hold them in coplanar, edge to edge contact, said panels being made of water non-absorbable closed cell expanded foam.

2. The combination of claim 1, and means at the meeting edges of said panels to hold said meeting edges from becoming offset from one another throughout their length.

3. The combination of claim 2, said means comprising a member having a portion embedded in the meeting edge of one panel and a portion projecting therefrom, and means in the meeting edge of said other panel to removably receive said projecting portion.

4. The combination of claim 1, said panels being formed on opposite surfaces thereof with grooves to provide air circulation between said surfaces and an article overlying said surfaces.

5. The combination of claim 4, said grooves being arranged in parallel, crossing horizontal and vertical rows.

6. The combination of claim 4, and portions of said surfaces, between said grooves having closely spaced grooves less deep than said air circulation grooves, to roughen said surfaces.

7. The combination of claim 5, said air circulation grooves being equally spaced apart.

8. The combination of claim 7, the spacing of said air circulation grooves being one inch.

9. The combination of claim 8, said air circulation grooves being about /s" deep.

10. The combination of claim 1, said panels having grooves at opposite surfaces thereof and close to the upper and lower edges thereof, and said channel members having longitudinal edges projecting into said grooves.

11. The combination of claim 1, and hanger means attached to the upper channel member.

12. The combination of claim 3, said means compris ing pegs.

13. The combination of claim 3, said means comprising a spline.

14. The combination of claim 3, said panels being formed on opposite surfaces thereof with grooves to provide air circulation between said surfaces and an article overlying said surfaces.

15. The combination of claim 14, said panels having grooves at opposite surfaces thereof and close to the upper and lower edges thereof, and said channel members having longitudinal edges projecting into said grooves.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 836,438 11/1906 Coey 38-10231 1,318,183 lO/l9l9 Schultz 38l02.9 2,521,100 9/1950 Sublette 223-69 PATRICK D. LAWSON, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 223--69 

